On our tour of Paul’s and John’s Footsteps through Turkey and Greece, we cruised from Kusadasai (near Ephesus) to Patmos, Crete and Santorini before we made a night cruise into the harbor at Athens. Some pictures from these segments of our tour.
Santorini over our head from the ship
Somehow you have to get from Turkey to Greece, and it is common for the tour companies — and we are very happy with the tour guides, accommodations, and professionalism of Pilgrim Tours — to visit Patmos and Crete and then Santorini on the way to Athens.
Santorini is a famously beautiful Greek island known for its blue domed buildings.
Kris and I took the evening to enjoy a nice dinner and a light stroll through Santorini.
Notice the picture below: from the top of the island both a sudden squall of clouds and potential rain came upon us, but then — a glorious burst of sun shot through the clouds and shimmered upon the waters. Straight from some ancient Greek description!
A sudden sun burst through the clouds in the bay of Santorini
Kris and Laura and I at the Parthenon on the Acropolis
We landed at Athens and headed to the Acropolis that overlooks Athens. Here Kris and Laura and I used our selfie stick (for the first time) and got the pillars — well designed to create an impression of being straight — of the Parthenon behind us.
And of course… the Areopagus — Mars Hill — where Paul discussed the meaning of the resurrection with some local philosophers. What you see is a bald, rugged dome of rock… the discussions took place at the right end of the dome.
Mars Hill (Areopagus from Acts 17) as it looks from the Acropolis
If you want to catch a view of 1st Century life, go the Agora of Athens and look up to the Acropolis:
What the Acropolis looks like from the Agora of Athens
